Merry Christmas, Master
by Azuranaito
Summary: It has been a year since the Santa Claus plan failed. And this day of remembering failure has made a certain Irken grow tired of failure. At his most solemn hour, Zim decides to give up his purpose, give up his life, almost. And a certain S.I.R reminds him there is still someone who cares. (AU to my other storylines.)


Merry Christmas, Master

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing in this story! There are a few elements to another TV show (Adventure Time) and mentions of Pokemon. These cartoons and that video game belong to their rightful owners.**

 **A/N: This is a bit overdue, but I've been wanting to write an IZ Christmas story. This takes place exactly one year from the Christmas episode, and that's about that. Merry Late Christmas everyone. And P.S, this is NOT a pairing with Zim and GIR.**

GIR was scanning the TV for something fun to watch. It was late December, and nothing was on but some "Christmas specials". The little android didn't care what was on, as long as it was good. There weren't any parties with the piggies he wanted to go to, and that was probably because the piggies were cold and in "hiberbation". GIR settled for a "Scary Monkey Christmas Special", and giggled madly at the disgustingly hideous primate on the television.

His funny TV experience was cut short by a hard slam of the base door. GIR turned in its direction and saw a furious Zim throwing his old man disguise off, the coat, hat, contacts, and beard landing in a pile while the Irken stomped away like a child.

Which, in Irken years, he technically was.

"What's wrong, Mastaah?" GIR asked sweetly, muting the TV. Zim whipped his head around quickly, glaring at his defective S.I.R unit. "Leave Zim alone, GIR! He isn't in the mood for anymore idiocy!" Zim snarled, turning back around and going deeper in the catacombs of the base. GIR's cyan eyes dimmed in sadness.

It's been a year since the Santa Claus' return fiasco. And that just made Zim hate anything and everything about the upcoming holiday, Christmas. It was the one time a plan was almost successful, and then big-head-Mary and the scary lady waltz in with the scientist man and mess everything up for his master. Then again, the Santa Suit was messing up already when they arrived. And they were there to finish the killing blow.

Even if the humans attacked Dib in the end, even if they were distracted by the Easter Moose ploy Zim used to distract them from the situation, they weren't destroyed. They weren't moved to the Massive to work as slaves/cannon fodder. When they returned to the base from the North Pole, Zim was in a rage! All he focused on was "creating doomy plans for the filthy humans", sometimes ignoring the calls of the Tallests and making them later, much to the leaders' dismay.

GIR never really understood why his master was so upset over that plan's failure. But, asking that question to his master only got GIR screamed at. The little robot never understood why anyway; as his defective AI gave him the mentality of a human toddler. But there were a few times where GIR was able to understand the Irken's fury. The times where the big head truly succeeded were some of those seldom times.

Zim usually got mad over the smallest things, even things GIR understood were very much so pointless. Like coming home from the Skool with mashed potatoes caked in his wig and all over his uniform. GIR usually liked being able to nibble the potatoes off his master, which, honestly, gave Zim a laugh. It was a little funny seeing his S.I.R nibbling lint covered barely edible food off his uniform. And, believe it or not, that counted as the big head's plan. Much of the Earth food burned on contact with his master's skin.

GIR changed the channel to something else. It was an "Adventure Time" Christmas special. "Well Finn, what're you up to? What's the Ice King gonna do now?" GIR asked the TV. It was at the end of the episode where everyone was gathered around BMO watching the Ice King's videos. Then an idea, of all things, popped in the S.I.R's head. He turned the TV off and went down the toilet elevator to check on his master.

GIR saw Zim briefing the Tallests. Red and Purple were saying something to his master, but GIR couldn't quite make it out. He tiptoed closer to hear better, eyes brightening and dimming every now and then.

"Sirs, I have a plan that won't fail." Zim said flatly, monotonously. Red and Purple stared the Irken down with their own gazes. "Well, _dazzle_ us, Zim. We have more Invaders to check on." Red lied about that part. All of the real Invaders were back on Irk except for Zim. But heck, Zim was exiled to Earth, not assigned there. And it seemed more and more Zim began to notice that the Tallests didn't even care. His plans were garbage in their eyes, and it wasn't like that he _didn't_ come up with any good ideas. Yet, it seemed he was ridiculed, and he noticed that more and more.

"My Tallests... I have grown weary of being here. I'm tired. Tired of all the ridicule from the humans, tired of the ridicule from you and the other Irkens. You all see me as some big joke, don't you?" Zim asked, tone flat, but bitterness was evident in Zim's magenta eyes. Red and Purple seemed to have stiffed a little at that point, not out of guilt, but because Zim had found out their little game.

Red spoke first, answering Zim's question. "Yes, Zim. The whole armada, the whole populace of Irk thinks you're a joke. Your mission was a joke as well. We didn't even know a planet was there, and heck, the populants there are so stupid that only a child, a mere human _smeet_ has been in your way, and successful in disarming your plans. That's pathetic, Zim."

"Maybe you do not realize I'm only eleven in Irken years. I'm still technically a smeet as well, yet the Control Brains send children into combat! And there are things here that are toxic to us, and humans _LIVE_ off of half of the resources. I might as well send buckets of water to you so your sorry skins melt off! I'm tired of all the idiocy, and it seems idiots aren't far from home, either. Even our hierarchy is broken! The only Tallest that was a good leader was Tallest Miyuki!" Zim exclaimed, anger evident in his voice.

"Yet you created that infinitely expanding monster that swallowed her whole! You killed her, Zim! Her, and thousands of innocent Irkens during Operation: Impending Doom 1!" Zim snarled when Red mentioned that. "Hypocrites! HYPOCRITES! **HYPOCRITES**! YOU'VE DESTROYED ENTIRE RACES! ENTIRE PLANETS! THE MASSIVE HAS LEVELED PLANETS LIKE BLORCH DOWN, TURNING IT INTO A PARKING LOT! AND ALL YOU DO IS LAUGH AT THOSE WHO SUFFER WHILE EATING SNACKS LIKE THE PIGS YOU ARE!" Zim was seething with rage at this point. He was sickened with the idiocy of everyone. And all he wanted was to be free, to be left alone. Red and Purple were a bit off put by the evident snarling of the Defective, but really, they didn't expect this.

Usually, Defective Irkens always panicked, always fearing they would die by their PAK being removed and disassembled. Zim was different; lashing out at the Tallests. It wasn't the reaction they expected. Whatever happened to the blindly obeying Irken that they took so much pleasure of ridiculing.

Then again, ridicule and apathy was what started this. Now their Defective was showing signs of moral intelligence... which was strange for the majority of the Irken Empire. There were few priests among the Empire, but those were appointed by Miyuki, and these were the eldest Irkens. Weak.

"Forget it, Red. It's obvious yourself and Purple don't care. Curse me for even thinking you did in the first place. This will be the last time I message you." And with that, Zim ended the transmission, slamming his fist on the computer. GIR was now scared. He had heard everything, and felt bad that the Tallers had hurt his master's feelings. He now knew what he needed to do. GIR wandered out of the base and through the toilet elevator.

GIR was now at the house level of the base and donned his dog costume. He rummaged around in the couch cushions, finding five Earth monies. He looked in the Roboparent closet and found eight more monies. Satisfied with the amount of monies he had, GIR went out of the house and went to the mall. A certain young paranormal investigator stared at the little S.I.R, approaching him from his hiding place.

"GIR." Said robot turned around at the sound of his name. "Hey, Mary, I can't talk right now. I gotta get Mastaah something." He explained. "What are you getting for Zim?" Dib asked. "A gift. He needs it during this time now. Master Zim gave up his mission. The least I could do for him is cheer him up a little." GIR tried to walk away again. "Don't bother him right now. He doesn't need to be reminded of the badness he went through for nothing." And he walked away for real, leaving a stunned Dib alone in the cold.

After a while of walking, GIR made it to the mall, looking around for something he could give to Zim. He wandered around, dodging humans doing last minute shopping, to find something he wanted to give to his master. GIR only had 13 monies, and everything in the mall was overpriced, so he had to find sonething that he might like. GIR loved toys, maybe Zim might like a toy too. Not a piggy though; he's sacrificed enough rubber pigs for Zim's time machine thingy.

GIR saw a clearance box in the center of the mall. Somehow having knowledge that clearance bin items were cheaper than the advertised stuff, the S.I.R dove into the box and skimmed around. A lot of stuff were in there; toys, clothes, movies, videogames- heck, even a used Gameslave 2 was in there! But, only the toys were what he were looking for.

And there it was. GIR saw a small yellow animal-like plush with a lightening spark tail, black tipped pointy ears, black, stitched in eyes with a white circular highlight, a little triangular black nose, a little mouth that almost looked smiling, and red circular cheeks. This little plush was a Pikachu plush.

GIR remembered that Zim got excited over seeing the little Pokemon in every episode of the anime that came on. GIR was watching it one day to his master's displeasure, but, with him not having anything to do that day, obliged to watch the cartoon. He loved seeing the Pikachu in battle, much to GIR's delight! There was finally something else Earthen that his master liked!

GIR picked up the soft yellow plush, another idea coming into his mind. Maybe he could put a message in the plush. Something short and sweet. A human saw GIR in the box, and picked him up. It was a girl who worked in the mall.

"Hey, little guy, do you wanna buy that Pikachu?" She asked sweetly. "Yes, please. For my... uh, brother. I wanna give him this for Christmas. Can I?" GIR asked in the sweetest voice he could ask a human something for. The lady nodded. "Sure, sweetie, I'll take you to the checkout." She picked the little S.I.R up and brought him to the checkout.

"That'll be seven dollars, sweetie." GIR pulled out his thirteen dollars, and gave them to the lady. "Do you want some wrapping paper and a box? I'll give them to you for free, you're such a sweet little boy to be doing this nice thing for your brother." She put the plush in the box, but didn't wrap it. "Thank you, lady. Merry Christmas!" He left the building, the first part of his plan in motion.

 _I hope you like this, Master. It's all I could do._ GIR thought to himself as he walked home. With his AI, he might not remember this later, with the memory being so bad, but as long as his master was happy, he didn't care. As long as he gave Zim his message. There was one thing he had to do: put a recording of his message in the plush using a special item.

And he had that item in his head: a recording box that he stole out of a baby doll. He already recorded his own voice inside it, mimicking the "I love you" statement the baby doll made every time it was squeezed. But how to put it in? Maybe cut up the doll and sew it up? Maybe he could ask for Mary to cut a hole and sew it up after the thing was put in it.

"No... that's crazy. I have a better idea!" GIR exclaimed as he came into the base, immediately hiding in the closet. GIR taped the recording box on the chest of the Pikachu plush, stuffing it in the present box, and wrapping it up for tomorrow. The box was messily wrapped, but the Pikachu was concealed. GIR was happy about everything.

"Until tomorrow... Master will be happy... I hope so..." And the little S.I.R closed his eyes and went into sleep mode in the closet.

And when tomorrow came, GIR hurried out of the closet and searched for Zim. He looked around in the kitchen and around outside. He looked in the observatory and in a few of the lower level rooms of the base. He searched around in the labs and in the room where that fateful talk was held... where Zim had figured out the truth. But no luck. There were many rooms in the Irken's base, and there were only two rooms he hadn't searched for his master in, and he knew one was off limits. So, he decided to go back to the house level and up to the bedroom incorporated for Zim inside the base.

GIR peered inside the room and saw his master, sulking, sitting on a bed looking outside a window. "Master?" GIR chirped, calling for Zim. The Irken turned around and glared at his S.I.R. "Go away, GIR! Just leave me to rot here. Everything was a cursed lie. You'd probably make the Dib happy if I were gone." GIR shook his head.

"No, Master. That's not true. I need you." GIR replied. He walked towards the bed and sat down next to Zim. "You're better than them. You're better! You think differently than the others, and I know I don't know much, Master, but I want you alive too. You're... you wouldn't leave me behind," GIR's eyes dimmed and it looked like tears were starting to form in them. "You're my friend, Master. I'd like to think that. And while this day brings back some bad memories, I still got you a Christmas present to make you feel better."

Zim scoffed dryly and rolled his magenta eyes. "What is it? A monkey? A rubber pig? Tacos?" He asked with a sardonic sneer. "No, Master. Just open it." GIR passed over his messily wrapped box to Zim. He tore the wrapping off and opened the box, revealing the Pikachu plush. His antennae twitched as he raised a nonexistent brow in curiosity, mostly at the strange object taped to the Pokemon plush's chest. "Why did you get me this, GIR?" He asked, finally after a few minutes, voice going soft.

"I wanted you to feel better. Did it work? I... remembered you liking the Pikachu thingy, so I saw this at the mall and bought it. Squeeze that thing on its chest!" GIR instructed, giggling a little. Zim did what his S.I.R asked. "I love yooooou." Said the voicebox object. It was strangely refreshing to hear to Zim. A small smile, one without malice or evil, crept on his face. GIR hugged his master's side, smiling big, cyan eyes glowing brightly.

"Merry Christmas, Master." Chimed the sweet, childish robot. Zim didn't mind GIR's show of affection. He hugged the Pikachu plush close along with the cold metal of his robot. He smiled again.

"I guess someone does care. Thank you, GIR."

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 **A/N: That's it for this story! I would have posted this on Christmas but fate wasn't kind with me. It still works. It's still winter. Well, Merry Late Christmas!**


End file.
